Seeking the Soul: Todd Warfield

Heart-to-Heart Conversations with the People of Rolling Ridge

By Rev. Michael Reed

Welcome to the April edition of "Seeking the Soul." On the first Tuesday of each month, Rev. Michael Reed, Rolling Ridge's Associate Director, engages in insightful conversations with program leaders here at the Ridge. These interviews offer a glimpse into the heart and soul of Rolling Ridge, through the lives of the people who make up our vibrant spiritual community!

Today, we have the privilege sharing a conversation with Todd Warfield, a United Methodist candidate for the office of Home Missioner, as well as an herbalist, naturalist, musician, and advocate for Indigenous rights in New England. Todd joined Rolling Ridge last fall as our Naturalist Consultant.

Todd shares his journey of blending Christian faith with indigenous spirituality, providing valuable insights on the significance (and potential pitfalls) of Land Acknowledgements. Additionally, he offers practical advice on how anyone can feel better and deepen their connection to the natural world.

Todd, can you tell us what your role is at Rolling Ridge, and how you are involved with us?

My role at Rolling Ridge is as a Naturalist Consultant. Right now, that involves identifying the flora and fauna that exist on the property, educating guests and the community about the ecosystems in the area, and advocating for good stewardship of the land.

Another piece of it is history. I’ve been working for several months on understanding the history of the area, particularly from an Indigenous perspective. This has not been an easy space to research, as much of the histories of the area were written from a colonial perspective.

I’ve also been working to try to bring some of my own practices into the Ridge. I’m trying to lean into allowing folks to have educational moments of discovery. Like ‘Oh wow, I didn't know how integral a vernal pool is (or even what a vernal pool is!) for wetlands and the larger landscape.’

You’re a person of Abenaki heritage. Can you tell us a bit more about the Abenaki, and what your heritage means to you?

The Abenaki have lived in the New England area even before settlers appeared on the shores. We continue to be resilient today. Abenaki identity is core to who I am and how I operate in the world. For me, this means navigating the space between traditional teachings of Indigenous spirituality and community while living in a predominately white context.

When I was growing up, my Abenaki heritage was something I knew about, but it wasn't something that we talked about, especially with my parents and grandparents. It’s a perspective that is inherent and ingrained for indigenous people in Vermont and New Hampshire, as a result of the eugenics programs run by the state government in the ‘20s and ‘30s, and even beyond that.

As an adult, I have become much more confident in my heritage, especially as I learn about what those ancestors have been through. As an advocate, I have been working at a local, state, and federal level to speak out about Indigenous rights and sovereignty issues — sometimes with advocacy, or education, or taking direct action through the years. And as a United Methodist, I am also a member of the New England Annual Conference Committee on Native American Ministries (CONAM), and am working at the Northeastern Jurisdiction level to help other CONAMs do the work necessary to advocate for justice in Indigenous issues.

Rolling Ridge has a Land Acknowledgement that we put into place in 2022. What are land acknowledgments? Why do they matter?

Land acknowledgments are a starting point for understanding the land on which we now stand and who inhabited or still inhabit the land from an Indigenous perspective and honoring those individuals. I’ve heard too often that people are unaware that Indigenous people lived in the area, or still live in the area.

  Photo from the Rolling Ridge Land Acknowledgement ceremony in 2022. You can view our Land Acknowledgement on our website.
 

Sometimes Land Acknowledgements are criticized as a kind of ‘virtue signaling’ or performative gesture, empty of anything meaningfully concrete. What’s your take on that?

These acknowledgments can be seen as virtue signaling or meaningful steps toward change. It is in the intention, but also how they are lived out. If the statement is just read, but work is not being done to further that, then it can be performative.

I mentioned that I’m creating a guide to the flora and fauna on the property, so that when guests are here they can learn what they are encountering while experiencing nature in a contemplative way. As much as I can, I’m trying to include the Abenaki keywords for those particular things — so, for example, calling the bald eagle by its Indigenous name. We’re always trying to make those kinds of connections so that we’re living into the Land Acknowledgement beyond just a mere statement.

Absolutely. It reminds me of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s famous idea of ‘cheap grace’ – superficial religious activity that doesn’t come with any real cost for the person involved. And — if you don’t me saying — I think that one of the ways that Rolling Ridge is living into its Land Acknowledgement in real and material ways is by hiring you! You are helping us tell the story of our past more honestly, and think carefully and critically about our future.

How do you see your role here in helping us as a community live out a more truthful and holistic connection to the land?

One of the things I know that I’m focused on — and something that the Ridge has received funding for, through the help of generous donors and grantors — is how we develop as an Earth Center. The goal is to live out of values, with our Land Acknowledgement, and to be intentional about sustainability. How do we start living with a focus on earth justice and earth spirituality? It’s what the world needs right now, as we're looking more and more at climate change realities. You can see that with the erratic weather we’ve been experiencing at the Ridge. We’re now having to live with those changes.

I’m glad you mentioned that. Many people know that a large number of trees were damaged by windstorms in the autumn of 2023. You’ve been hard at work to help us recover. Can you say more about what you’ve been up to?

It was a microburst that uprooted large numbers of trees and snapped others like twigs. Parts of our trials remain closed. I’ve been working with multiple agencies, including the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, to assess the damage and determine appropriate cleanup methods. We’ve applied for grant funding and worked with volunteer groups and our staff to do what we can. There’s still much more to be done.

When I walked the property to assess the damage, I was concerned about the storm damage. But I'm also concerned about longer-term sustainability. What does this look like for the next generation? Or even further down the road? How do we continue to steward the lands that are here that there is a forest in another 25 to 30 years? Those are the questions we also need to be asking.

What’s a simple thing people can do today to get more connected with the earth?

It can be as simple as going outside! We can often be sedentary, so getting outside, and putting our feet on the ground, in the grass, or in the sand can help restore balance within ourselves. Studies have shown even ten minutes outside to connect with the earth can help improve our outlook on life.

Can you tell us a bit more about Rolling Ridge’s “Eco-Partners”? Who are they, and how do these partnerships add to the mission of the Ridge?

Rolling Ridge has a variety of partnerships with groups that offer programming around environment and creation care. From forest bathing to composting to the Giving Garden to our Pray and Paddle program, these partners enhance the mission of Rolling Ridge by offering enrichment through eco-spirituality and environmental education. 

I would suggest that people come to our upcoming Earth Day event at Rolling Ridge on Saturday, April 20th from 1-4 pm. Each of our eco-partners will be leading a workshop, happening every hour so that people can sample two or three different activities.

I will be leading a workshop on herbalism, which is the use of plants or herbs for a variety of ailments, in conjunction with Western medicine. Christine Cohne from Nature’s Pace LLC is doing an introduction to Forest Bathing. The Giving Garden will be hosting hands-on organic gardening. Kay Milligan from Nature Play with Kay will run outdoor activities for kids. Maria and Carol from our Conscious Composting program will do an introduction to composting. Kent Harrop from Pray and Paddle is teaching lakeside meditation and mindfulness, and — this is a new addition — Judy Smith will give guided walks of the Rolling Ridge Labyrinths.

When I last talked with you, you told me that you feel a strong connection with the land. Would you mind saying a bit more about that?

Simply put, the land is sacred. We are connected to all of nature, including the land. Earth Day, for example, is much more than just one day a year. An eco-justice mindset is all about how we live much more intentionally so that we’re not just taking—not just consuming what’s there. We’re understanding how to live with it, and stewarding forward. It’s also about living more simply. Often, our consumerist lifestyles overwhelm us and cause us to search for that next big purchase.

A few years ago, I was in a state park near where I live and was drawn to have a long conversation with one of the trees. Every time I return, I make sure to give thanks for that tree and greet it when I am there. When I walk in the forest, I think about the ancestors who are part of that landscape, how they embody the trees that surround us, and how the dirt that I walk on is the ashes of those who came before me. 

What role does faith play for you in all this?

My faith is part of how I try to live out each day. I often feel like I’m walking between two worlds — between a Western world and indigenous intentionality, as I try to be more spiritual in that regard. It’s a fine balance, and it can be challenging. I still wrestle with it.

I have found so much comfort in leaning into liberation theology, which helps to change our mindsets about what is possible. There are other ways to look at what faith is and does, especially when you find yourself within the constructs of traditional systems or methods. Howard Thurman too is a spiritual hero for me. His work in social justice movements and civil rights leadership have been influential to me in my journey in social justice work. His writings are still very relevant today.

What gives you hope for the future?

I have hope for the next generations coming up. Young children are speaking out about climate change and other social issues that I don’t recall seeing much of when I was growing up. That’s exciting.

Thank you so much, Todd! Where can people contact you if they want to learn more?

You can email me at earthcenter@rollingridge.org. I’ll also be there for Earth Day at Rolling Ridge on April 20th. Please come and say hello!

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.